SSN is a digest of the day's soccer/football/futbol articles with a focus on the top European leagues and the United States National Team. Below, you’ll find links to articles and video, as well as additional features and commentary. We locate the top news of the day so you can stay updated with ease.

Friday, June 18, 2010

If lack of bunting in the street is any indication, America appears to be living up to its reputation for glorious isolation. While the rest of the globe is already gripped by World Cup fever, here in the US there are scant outward signs of football – or rather soccer – obsession.

Casillas was at least partly at fault for Gelson Fernandes's goal that gave Switzerland their 1-0 win and fingers have already been pointed at Carbonero, a journalist at a Spanish TV station, who prior to the game was filming footage to camera behind Casillas's goal.

In the new 2010-11 fixtures released today, Chelsea go to Tottenham on Dec 11. A week later they entertain Manchester United, at Stamford Bridge. And, on Boxing Day, Chelsea travel to the Emirates Stadium to take on close rivals Arsenal. If that is hard enough, Chelsea’s return to Old Trafford is scheduled for May 7 - the third-from-last fixture of the new campaign - and a potential title decider. And the champions finish with another problematic game, away to Everton at Goodison Park.

OK, so the World Cup hasn't exactly been a free-flowing goalfest (Germany's 4-0 shellacking of the Socceroos notwithstanding). And the stars of the show have not been Messi and Rooney and Ronaldo, but a slippery ball whose name sounds like a New Orleans fish stew, and a plastic horn more loathed than BP.

"I can understand that goalkeepers are not happy, and I think the authorities should listen to them," Eriksson said. "I think the matter should be discussed. Players, coaches and perhaps top goalkeepers should get together. Especially people should listen to the goalkeepers' point of view, because the ball isn't doing them any favours."

Carlos Queiroz, the Portugal coach: "I find it strange that normally players are prevented from wearing even a simple string bracelet in a game, yet the referee gave permission for Drogba to play in a cast. It is not really a matter for Portugal and I do not wish to make a complaint, but I would like to know if the rules are still the same for all players."

Back at home in Spain, a strange atmosphere prevails, unique in its consensus that La Roja are the tournament's best side, yet oddly restrained in the face of such unbridled optimism. The Spanish are a happy enough lot, as befits their so-called Latin temperament, but one would hardly describe them as eternal optimists.

Franz Beckenbauer has stored up potential for a stormy clash between England and Germany by declaring that Fabio Capello's side have headed "backwards into the bad old days of kick and rush" on the evidence of Saturday's opening match against the United States and he has also suggested that there is very little that can be done to improve things.

In Durban on Sunday evening, the year-round sub-tropical climate on the Indian Ocean coast ensured that Germany’s 4-0 demolition of Australia was staged in balmy temperatures in excess of 20 degrees.

Yet 24 hours later, Italy and Paraguay slugged out an uninspiring 1-1 draw in Cape Town in horrendous conditions that saw the southern city battered by incessant rain, high winds and hail-storms throughout the day. The temperature at kick-off time was four degrees.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi joined calls by broadcasters and fans to ban the vuvuzela at the World Cup as British supermarkets reported selling one of the plastic horns every two seconds.

Some horn players complain of “vuvuzela lip” from the plastic mouthpiece. Bruce Copley, who has been teaching pupils to play the vuvuzela, advised using baby oil to reduce friction.

There may yet be sanctuary for armchair fans. A website — antivuvuzelafilter.com — is said to offer a download for 2.95euros (£2.45) which combats the horn by playing back at the television set noise waves at the same frequency.

The bar was called Bulls. It was a rugby bar, named after the Blue Bulls, a provincial team from Pretoria, but today it would become a soccer bar. Today it would become an English bar filled with Englishmen. They would see it, and they would claim it. The bar was their territory.

The first weekend of the 2010 World Cup has come and gone, with more success than failure. FIFA gleefully reported "record TV audience" for the opening match. The United States Soccer Federation sent a release announcing that Saturday's United States-England tilt in Rustenburg had the highest ratings of any first round match ever. (Amazingly, almost one in five people in Germany viewed the Americans battle the Three Lions.)